Night tube strike ‘wholly unnecessary’

London Underground workers are currently staging a 24-hour strike over the introduction of the new night Tube service.

Responding to the action, David Leam, Director of Infrastructure Policy at London First, said:

“Londoners and tourists are both aggrieved and baffled at the disruption now being caused by this wholly unnecessary strike.

“A 24/7 service on the Tube will support additional jobs, make London more attractive to tourists and make journeys safer and easier for those who work late. The night tube is good news for Londoners and London businesses and for our reputation as a leading global capital – but that message is currently being drowned out by travel chaos.

“LU and the unions now need to get back to the negotiating table and find the deal that gives Londoners the modern 24-hour service they want.”

London First has previously welcomed the announcement that London Underground would run a 24-hour ‘Night Tube’ service at weekends,, due to start in September 2015.

Independent research into the economic benefits of the Night Tube, commissioned by London First and Transport for London, found that the new service will boost jobs and help maintain London’s status as a vibrant and exciting place to live, work and visit.

The research found:

Around 1,965 permanent jobs will be supported by the Night Tube – 265 through direct operation of the service and 1,700 indirectly in the night-time economy.

The net additional output produced as a result equates to an additional £360m over 30 years.

Time savings will be on average 20 minutes, but up to an hour will be saved on some routes.

The standard business case shows that for each £1 spent on delivering the Night Tube, benefits will be £2.70.

Adding in wider economic impacts increases this benefit by £1.20 for every pound spent